How many players away are we?

gftChris

Concerning starters, according to the PFF list, and our discussions with Mack/Haden, as well as the overriding feeling of "being happy to go with" Crowell and West, we're looking something like this in terms of 'good' players:

QB

RB - West

RB - Crowell

LT - Thomas

LG - Bitonio

C - Mack

RG - Greco

RT - Schwartz

WR - Hawkins

WR - Gabriel

WR - Austin

WR - Benjamin

TE - Barnidge

TE - Dray

DE - Winn

NT - Kitchen

DE - D. Bryant

OLB - Kruger

ILB - Dansby

ILB - Robertson/Kirksey

OLB - Mingo/Sheard

CB - Gilbert

CB - Skrine

CB - Haden

SS - Whitner

FS - Gipson

Elite

Good

Average

Aside from West/Crowell, the only place we don't have at least an 'average' player is QB. Which says it all.

Buck The Frowns

Interesting in that Hoyer may not be as bad as we think. His ineffectiveness coincided with defensive linemen being in his face ten times more often after Mack's leg was broken. I knew there was a drop off in protection but did not realize how large it was.

PFF is very informative.

Mudfly

Ok.....revised this slightly, using the PFF grades for all of them......and a little color to help my old eyes....hope this is helpful....

The numbers in parenthesis are where that players "score" ranked league wide......

QB- Hoyer

RB - West

RB - Crowell

LT - Thomas(3)

LG - Bitonio(5)

C - Mack

RG - Greco(11)

RT - Schwartz(30)

WR - Hawkins(11)

WR - Gabriel(17)

WR - Austin (42)

WR - Benjamin

TE - Barnidge

TE - Dray

DE - Winn

NT - Kitchen

DE - D. Bryant

NOTE: Our entire D line graded in the negative. Not one bright spot there.....

OLB - Kruger(14)

ILB - Dansby(8)...not top 5, but close....was on track until injured

ILB - Robertson(19)

OLB - Mingo(15) - Sheard(16)

CB - Skrine

CB - Haden

SS - Whitner

FS - Gipson....like Mack, Gipson was on track to be #1, before he got hurt....so, Im calling him elite too...

Elite = Top 5 type of player

Good = Above average(plus score in the green)

Average

below average = Below average(negative score in the red)

gftChris

I thought John Hughes graded out positively?

Mudfly

@gftchris said:
I thought John Hughes graded out positively?

actually...you're right!!.....I missed him because he didn't have enough snaps(like Mack, again).....his score was a +5.2, which if continued over 16 games, would have put him at 16.6....or #10 in the league at his position.....

gftChris

Yeah I had a feeling I'd read that a few places. Got to remember the guys coming back from injury like Hughes and A. Bryant, who looked so good before injury last year.

Tour2ma

@mudfly said:
Ok.....revised this slightly, using the PFF grades for all of them......and a little color to help my old eyes....hope this is helpful....

On behalf of all the colorblind folk in the world... Thanks a lot!

Mudfly

@tour2ma said:
On behalf of all the colorblind folk in the world... Thanks a lot!

Ha!....sorry bout that.....adjusted the color and bolded now......

BitchTits

How is it that the previous year with our dc we were nearly top 10, but this year with the same base defense, and same players our Dline is suddenly the worst on this team. Prior to the 2014 season, everyone had to think that the dline was our strength. I wonder if it has to do with our DC. Ray Horton 3-4 was top 10 for what 13 weeks, and top 12 for the season, but Jim O'Neal's 3-4 is horrible? Rubin, Taylor and Bryant were very good in 2013, and Hughes, and Wynn were solid rotational guys. Now our dline is terrible? I blame O'Neil.

Tim Couch Pulls Out

cbbacker said:
How is it that the previous year with our dc we were nearly top 10, but this year with the same base defense, and same players our Dline is suddenly the worst on this team. Prior to the 2014 season, everyone had to think that the dline was our strength. I wonder if it has to do with our DC. Ray Horton 3-4 was top 10 for what 13 weeks, and top 12 for the season, but Jim O'Neal's 3-4 is horrible? Rubin, Taylor and Bryant were very good in 2013, and Hughes, and Wynn were solid rotational guys. Now our dline is terrible? I blame O'Neil.

Horton's defense was also very bad in a number of key defense statistical categories. Just because we were giving up less YPG doesn't mean we had a good defense, it means our terrible offense gave the opponents the ball in great field position. We were ranked near the bottom of the league in average starting position for defense, if I recall correctly.

I had a whole post about this at year's end last year, about how Horton's defense wasn't nearly as good as was advertised.

Injuries also had something to do with it, as did designation changes.

LBC mike

We are about thirty guys away.

BitchTits

@tim-couch-pulls-out said:

Horton's defense was also very bad in a number of key defense statistical categories. Just because we were giving up less YPG doesn't mean we had a good defense, it means our terrible offense gave the opponents the ball in great field position. We were ranked near the bottom of the league in average starting position for defense, if I recall correctly.

I had a whole post about this at year's end last year, about how Horton's defense wasn't nearly as good as was advertised.

Injuries also had something to do with it, as did designation changes.

I have no doubt, but there is no denying that this years defense was far worse, that was my point. I don't care if we gave up less yards; I am just wondering how the same players, same base defense (yes I know their styles are different) but it's still the same base defense, and it is far worse than last year.

Even the injuries can be explained away. The Dline was supposed to be our deepest group of players. Just frustrates me to no end that a group of positions now likely needs addressed in FA or the draft after only a year when they were very good.

Taco918

@tim-couch-pulls-out said:

That's how I've seen it all year.

An ILB, a pass rushing OLB, and a QB away.

This sums it up perfectly although I might add a tall WR to the list. I'd kill for Dez or DT but I'm a tad bias as they hail from my two schools.

Some DL and OL depth would certainly help as well but that could be said for every NFL team.